


the forest where we bond

by gayhems



Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Implied Relationships, M/M, Post War, last 3 are very brief, like right after it, theyre good friends and really enjoy each others company
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-19
Updated: 2017-03-19
Packaged: 2018-10-07 14:56:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,030
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10362996
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gayhems/pseuds/gayhems
Summary: Fresh out of war, Hoshido and Nohr seek a treaty, leaving the younger six royals out of ideas for entertainment.





	

The trees embraced Leo like an old friend, branches brushing his shoulders, finally free of his heavy armor, and bark kissing the backs of his hands. For someone that hated being outside, he certainly missed the feeling of clean air on his skin and the hearty silence that draped itself over the forest. His boots dislodged gravel and stones, making his arrival to the rather large clearing lack a significant amount of stealth. Every sound he made, whether it be crunching under his shoes or satisfied humming from his chest, sounded loud enough for the castle, barely a mile away, to hear. However, he didn’t pay much mind, as he could easily claim to be lost on one of the many Hoshidan trails. Would it work more than once? Not a chance.

Regardless of the possible consequences, Leo was mostly relaxed. The war was over, and he felt prideful knowing that his contribution provided even a little bit of force that protected his siblings from an early demise. He was so caught up in his thoughts, he almost walked right past the tall, ancient tree that became the outlet for his free time over the last few days. The bark pressed through his borrowed shirt, a welcome sensation as he slid into a sitting position. Takumi wasn’t often all that late, so Leo was sure there wouldn’t be a whole lot of wait time. What he did not expect was Takumi to swing, upside down, from a branch a mere few feet above his head with a call of his name. His, completely warranted, response was a yelp of surprise and a mouthful of bitter weeds as he toppled sideways. 

Takumi effortlessly landed like a cat, sinking down to sit beside Leo with endless peals of laughter. This was, in the whole week they’d been meeting out in the woods to talk and bond, the most open Leo had ever seen him, so he refrained from holding the scare against him. Instead, he sat up with enough force to shoulder check Takumi into the next realm. Takumi, of course, tipped like a bag of weights, arms flailing and hand catching the sleeve of Leo’s shirt and thus dragging him down too. Leo’s chin bounced painfully off of the side of Takumi’s head and Takumi’s nose hit a big rock as they landed in a heap on the gravel. For the next five minutes, they stayed there, laughing too hard to move and, honestly, it wasn’t all that uncomfortable. With the extra layers, Takumi’s shoulder was comfortable, and at some point Leo’s arm ended up wedged underneath Takumi’s head. 

The contact was weird, definitely, but not nearly unwelcome. It was warm and comfy and, dare he say it, satisfying. So he didn’t move a muscle, closing his eyes for good measure, just drinking in the warm weather and positive touching. Eventually, Takumi turned his head, looking back at Leo with the fondest of smiles, eyelids drooping and bangs sticking to his forehead, and he looked happier than he’d ever looked during the months at war. He said something, but as soon as the words fell off his lips, they dissipated into the sweet breeze and he just lied his head back down with a sigh of contentment. A few raindrops landed on Leo’s cheek, alerting him that they probably needed to get up before they got all muddy. A metaphor, that Niles had shared with him during a peacekeeping dinner one night, that didn’t apply at all, yet sat in the back of his mind, surfaced. 

While it was just a drizzle, they decided it was manageable, resting their eyes and pretending like the intimacy they were experiencing wasn’t beyond comforting on more levels than physical. Hell, Takumi was nearly asleep within a few minutes. As the rain sped up, Takumi let go of Leo’s hand, scowling at the clouds for disturbing the nap he was trying to take. Leo sat up and then stood up, thoughtlessly looping an arm around Takumi’s midsection as he did to give him a hand in standing up. Takumi, surprisingly, didn’t complain or fuss, leaning a bit of his weight of him as they found their balance. Thunder cracked, shaking the trees and snapping Takumi out of his sleepy state. The trees provided cover as they hurried back up the trail and towards the castle. One of Takumi’s retainers caught eye of them, leaving his perch under the overhang of a shop to greet his liege, splitting his face with a grin. The liege himself waved to his retainer, still relatively sleepy and sluggish on his feet. 

Hinata bid them goodbye at the passing of, who Leo was almost positive was, another one of the Hoshidan retainers, this one sporting long hair up in a neat ponytail. Hinata fell into stride next to him, easily starting a conversation as he looped their arms together. Takumi was a few steps ahead him by the time Leo tuned back into their wordless conversation, hair weighed down by the water and laying flat against the top of his head. As soon as his shoes were off, so was his first layer, and then his second, and then his socks. What was left was a shivering mass of frizzy hair, and it was honestly laughable. Leo was in stitches by the time Xander and Ryoma came around the corner to see what all the ruckus was about. 

Ryoma chuckled, running his fingers through the back of Takumi’s hair affectionately, snorting when they caught and jerked his younger brother’s head back an inch or two. The resulting pained sound would have been haunting, had Takumi not sounded like a yowling junkyard cat. When Takumi swung at Ryoma, he was met by a hand against his forehead, holding him just far enough away to miss every punch he tried to throw. Xander even smiled, allowing his primped and pressed demeanor slip for a moment as he observed the humanity of his former enemies. Leo smiled as well, looking over at his brother with a genuine happiness to him, and for the first time since he was a child, everything was manageable.

**Author's Note:**

> my tumblr is nileshighclub


End file.
